


Cassius drabbles

by ThatFanficReader



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-29
Updated: 2019-12-05
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:08:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,843
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21602761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatFanficReader/pseuds/ThatFanficReader
Summary: Take this before I lose my nerveNot everything will be finished honestly, this is mostly just to better understand my character and his relationships.
Kudos: 6





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Plant man has no name yet rip in piss

By the heart, he was screwed.

Cassius was well and truly out of luck.

Never had he imagined that he'd come across the same bug twice when the Troupe had the habit of traveling great distances for shows.  
And yet?

Cassius found himself slammed rather harshly into a stone wall, a twinge of pain racing up through his carapace as his wings were ungraciously pinned down and his head snapped against the surface behind him.

Granted, it wasn't the first time this bug, or more appropriately, root had slammed him into a hard surface, but it had always been followed by a very pleasant evening.

This, however, was no where near pleasant nor would it be.

Curses and accusations flew from the roots mouth as he harshly slammed Cass into the wall to accentuate every other sentence.

"You dare leave without so much as a warning? Without so much as a farewell?" The root hissed, the ends of his roots curling and unfurling in his agitation, "I was left looking like a fool! Solely because you were too selfish-!"

"Enough!" The butterfly yelled, gripping the green clad travelers wrist and attempting to pry away his hands from the red suspenders held so viciously in his grip, "You knew I would leave eventually! I told you that in the beginning! We agreed there would be no ill will between us when we eventually had to split ways! Fennel, you knew I might have had to leave at a moments notice!"

Fennel's grip on Cassius suspenders fell away, only for his hands to move to the wall on either side of the butterfly's head. His voice left no question for how he felt, his fingers digging into the sound.

"You could have come and found me for one last farewell-"

"I had no time-"

"You could have left a note! A letter or some spoken word with a resident!"

"I had responsibilities to-"

"You could have stayed!"

Cassius's mouth snapped shut with an audible click under his mask, eyes wide as Fennel looked away. He was tense, even as he pulled away from the butterfly he'd pulled into the alley between two large complexes in the City Of Tears. 

"I.. I wanted you to stay.."

The root crossed his arms over his chest, looking for all the world like someone had kicked his tiktik. It caused a stab of guilt to pierce Cassius's heart, even if he hadn't felt the same.

Cassius reached out, one hand gently cupping the others elbow as he stepped just a little closer as Fennel continued. 

"I thought that maybe.. we could be something.. that I could have you with me.."

"Oh, my sweet flower.. my intentions were never to hurt you.. we had an agreement.. I had no clue your feelings had changed.."

Cassius rubbed his thumb softly against the vines that replaced the chitin a bug would have, heaving a soft sigh as he dropped his gaze, unable to meet the others. "I'm sorry.. but I can't return the sentiment.. I'm afraid my heart lies elsewhere.."

"With that blasted Troupe still?" Fennel grumbled, not yet pulling away from the gentle hold Cassius had on him.

He pulled away only when Cassius did not respond, when he didnt nod or make any sign of agreement.  
His hands fell to his sides, one gripping the nail at his side as his rage began anew and venom laced his words.

"Dont tell me you've actually fallen for one of those infernal carnies. Who is it that managed to steal your fancy? Was it that overzealous clown of a Troupe Mast-"

"Do not speak of the Master in such a way!" Cassius hissed, his antenna stiffening as he jabbed a finger into the others chest.

Fennel glared back, smacking away the offending hand, "So it was then? I'll cut him down and prove to you that he doesn't deserve-!"

"You will do no such thing, Fennel! The Master is not the one who holds my heart, no one in the Troupe does. It's none of you concern who it is, and I won't have you going off to challenge him!" Cassius stepped away, wings twitching in agitation as he tried his best to keep them in check. He crossed his arms, gaze listing to the side to watch the rain patter against the cobbled walkways.

"I'm confident in his abilities to stand against you, but even then, I'm not a prize to be won. We've had our fun, but now it's time for you to put those feelings to rest and move on.  
"I wont be so easily swayed to change my mind, not when it comes to him.."

Fennel' grip on his nail flexed, the tension in his shoulders shifting from that of someone looking for a fight to one of resignation. 

"What makes this mystery bug so different?"

A pause.

Cassius mulled the query over in his mind for a moment, a soft smile tugging at his lips.  
"What we had, Fennel, was purely for the relief of built up emotion. We knew what it meant when the other showed up. 

"With him it's.. different. There's no expectations. He doesn't want anything out of me, he has no ulterior motive. He comes back even if I give him no reason to. He's just.. fun to be around, fun to mess with, and he plays along. 

"Not once since I've met him has he tried to get something out of me."

For a while, neither said a word. A silence fell between the two that was only broken by the drone of an endless rain. 

And eventually, the soft tap tap tapping of footsteps.

With a grin, evident only in the way his eyes crinkled behind his mask, Cassius stood a little straighter, antennae hanging a little less stiff as he looked out from the alley to the bug that tended to plague his mind. 

"I'm afraid I have to get a move on. Bugs to entertain, dead kingdoms to search for Nightmare flames in, you know how it is." Cassius gave a flippant gesture before his hand hesitantly came to rest on Fennel upper arm, offering a gentle squeeze.

"I may not feel the same for you, but there is someone out there who will. I can't offer you the same fun as before, but do drop by and watch the Troupe perform if you have a change of heart."

And before the other could respond, Cassius slipped out of the alleyway and right up to the bug who held his heart, much to said bugs surprise.


	2. Bad End 1 of ?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One of the various bad endings cassius could potentially succumb to

Stumbling into the abandoned and crumbling hovel, Cassius held tight to his abdomen.

Lacerations littered his carapace, streaks of blood mingling with splatters of infectious goo from husks that had quickly outnumbered him.  
He'd made do with what he'd had, even if his escape had been a complete stroke of luck.

Maybe he should have taken Ehst up on his offer to teach him to duel with a nail proper instead of being a stubborn grub about the effectiveness of his daggers. In a team, they would have been as effective as he claimed.   
Alone?   
Not so much

Moving to a backroom of the crumbling building, away from the broken door and the prying eyes of any wandering husks, Cassius sunk to the floor.  
Sitting forward on his knees, he held himself up on shaky arms, gravel and debris digging into his palm.

He just needed a few minutes to recuperate, to rest for a spell and clean his wounds. Unfortunate, that he had no one to joke with to take his mind off of things, to take his mind off of the fact that infection had dripped into so many of his open wounds.  
It burned, making him feel like he'd poured acid into them. Oh how he'd have preferred that..

He had just wanted to look for some semblance of a clue. A clue to where Ehst had gone, if he was alive and well or if he too had succumbed to the same fate as every other adventurer that came to seek out this gods forsaken kingdom.  
He wished they'd packed up and left back when Cass had first suggested it, there had been so many other kingdoms to choose from, most of which should have been so lovely to see by now.   
But Ehst had insisted on seeing all this land had to offer before leaving.  
Cass had no idea how much he'd left to see, but it couldnt have been so much that he'd take so long.   
So, he'd jumped to the conclusion that Ehst had been hurt. That he had holed himself up somewhere to heal.  
Because he was smart. And he'd lasted this long. And he wouldnt have left without him, not after the butterfly had left the Troupe for him.   
Not after Cassius had given up all he'd had left to start anew by his side.  
He wouldn't have. He refused to entertain it as an option.

So, logically, Ehst was just having a bit of difficulty coming home.  
Cassius would show up and help him, he'd make jokes and tease and make sure he was safe. They would leave this dying kingdom and enjoy each others company in a different one.

But first, Cassius had to help himself.   
He wiped away the blood that had started to slow with the tattered remains of a curtain, pointedly ignoring the pulsing dim glow that seemed to come from the deepest part of his wounds.  
He ignored the steadily growing fuzzy feeling in his head.  
And he very deliberately ignored the faint whispers that burned at the back of his thoughts.

He couldn't succumb, couldn't be distracted from what he came to do.

He had to get up and keep moving, at least back to where he and Ehst had deemed a suitable place to set up camp.

Yet, in his attempt to stand, he simply fell back down.

Legs splayed out in front of him now, Cassius sat on the floor as the room spun. He couldnt succumb. He had to fight the blinding light that had consumed his thoughts so much faster than he had anticipated.   
But, why get up now? When such sweet nothings filled his head? Bringing up happier memories that were so much brighter than they had any right being?

They made his heart ache. 

How cruel to fill his head with things that made his knees weak. To see memories of happier times in one so dreary, to see dreams and hope's for the future so vividly. Why would he move and ruin such bright and vivid dreams?

He had just wanted to find Ehst and go home, to make sure he was safe. To make sure he was ok..

And yet, he had fallen before he had even a clue of the others where abouts. Where could he have gone?

The question plagued the butterfly's last conscious thought as he sat amidst the rubble, stare unfocused as his mind unraveled.


End file.
